Mower.



No, 740,561.v PATENTED QGT. 6, 1903.

ALHART.

MOWBR.

APPLICATION FILED APR. 9, 1898.

N0 MODEL.

5 SHEETS-SHEET L WITNESSES:

INVENTOR ATTORN-E ma Noms Perma ca4 vpn-mimo msmnoron. n. c.

No. 740,561. PATENTED OCT. 6, 1903.

A. HART.. MOWBAR. PPL'IOTIQN'Fl- LED APK; 9,. 189B.

No MODEL. 5 mus-SHEET 2.

F IGM WITNESSES:

INVENTOR' ATToRNEYnS.

No. 740,561. jPATENTED 00T. 6, 190s; A. HART. MGWER.

AFPLIGATION FILED APR. 9, 1 898. NO MODEL. l V6 SHEETS-SHEET 4,.

W fw fwz? BY WM im am y -l ATTORN YS.

TH; u cRms #News co.. wcrwumo, wAsHmm-ow. u4 c UNITED y STATES latentedOctober 6, IQOS.

Fries.

PATENT ALFRED HART, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS, ASSIGNOR, BY MESNEASSIGNMENTS, TO SAID ALF-REDHART, FREDERICK E. HART, OF CHICAGO,ILLINOIS,

RALPH W. HAR-T, OF SAN FRANCISCO, CALIFORNIA, AND JOHN L. JACK- SON, OFRIVER'FOREST, ILLINOIS.

lMower-z.

:SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 740,561, dated October6, 1903.

Application filed April 9, 1898. Serial lilo.v 676.978. (No model.)

T0 all whom. it may concern.- Be it known that I, ALFRED HART, a citizenof the United States, residing at Chicago, in the county of Cook andState of Illinois, have invented certain new and useful Improvements inMowers, of which the following is a specilication, reference being hadto the accompanying drawings.

My invention relates to harvesting machinery, and particularly tomowers.

It has for its object to provide various irnprovements in machines ofthis character, among which may be mentioned improved folding mechanismfor the finger-bar, by which the folding of the bar is edected entirely,or substantially so, by spring mechanism, thus relieving the operator ofthe labor i of electing this operation; also, an improved constructionof folding mechanism in which the folding-spring may be adjusted sothatl it normally exerts no force upon the fingerbar, but is thrown intoand out of loperation at the pleasure of the operator; also, to providecertain improvements in the vconstruction illustrated and described inmyapplication Serial No. 397,912, filed June 29,1891, in which the draftof the team Vis applied partly to the carriage and partly to thenger-bar.- carrying frame, such improvements relating tothe mechanismfor adjusting the distribution of the draft between the carriage andinger-bar-carrying frame, so that such mechanism may be readily adjustedby the operator without leaving his seat; also, to provide aconstruction whereby the knife-bar is started abruptly with considerablepower instead of gradually, as in the construction heretofore used;also, to provide means whereby the knife-bar will continue its operationslightly after the draft of the team ceases; also, to provide meanswhereby the bunching ofthe grass between the guards and knife-sectionswill be prevented and to provide a construction'whereby the cutting willbe eifected when the knives are moving at their greatest speed; also, toprovide meansV What I regard as new will be set forth in the claims.

In the drawings, Figurel is a plan view, part of the linger-bar beingbroken off. Fig. 2 is a plan view of one of the ledger-plates. Fig. 3 isan edge view of the same. Fig. 4 is a view of the mechanism for foldingthe finger-bar. Fig. 5 is a section on line 5 5 of Fig. 4. Fig. 6 is aside view of the folding mechanism, showing the lingerbar in its foldedposition. Fig. 7 is a cross-section ofthe folding mechanism on line 7 7of Fig. 4. Fig. 8 isasimilar view showing the finger-bar raised. Fig. 9is a view showing the folding mechanlism in an intermediate position.Fig. 10 is a section on line 10 10 of Fig. 9. Fig. 11 is a sideelevation of the tongue and the draft devices, the whiflietrees being insection. Fig. l2 -is a plan view of the locking mechanism which controlsthe operation of the knife-bar, certain parts being in section.

Referring to the drawings, l1 indicates the tongue of the mower, 12 13the wheels, and 14 the main frame, which carries a part of the usualdriving mechanism, consisting of a bevel-gear 15, driven from the wheel13, piuion .16, meshing with said gear l5, a crankdisk 17, rot-ated fromthe pinion 16, a pitman v18, a rock-shaft 19, rocked by the pitman 1S,and a crank 20, mounted upon the lowerend of the rock-shaft 19 andconnected by pitman 21 to the knife-bar 22. Connected to the main vframeis the finger-bar-carryi'ng frame 23, which is adapted to he raised to agreater or less extent to vary the pressure of the fingerbar on theground.

24: indicates the finger-bar,v which is coni nected at its .inner endbya hinge 25 to a part 26 of the finger-bar-carrying frame, by whicharrangement the finger-bar may be folded up into a more or less verticalposition in the usual way. The inner end of the finger-bar rests upon ashoe 27, to which it is connected, and the hinge 25 is preferablyconnected toa part of the shoe 27, as shown in Fig. 6, instead ofdirectly to the linger-bar.

28 indicates guards, which are of the usual form.

29 indicates the ledger-plates, which are secured upon the guards, asusual. As shown in Fig. 2, the ledger-plates 29 are provided IDO withnotches 30, the object of which will be hereinafter set forth.

22 indicates the knife-bar, which is of the usual form, except that theknife-sections are broader at the point than the knives heretofore used.The operating mechanism is so adjusted that the knife-sections are moveda greater distance than the. space from center to center of adjoiningguards, by which construction the knife-sections are in cutting positionwhen moving at their greatest speed, thus making the cut surer andpreventing clogging of the machine to a large extent. The object of thenotches .30 in the ledgerplates is to prevent the grass from bunching,and thereby interfering with the cutting'of the knives. The notches inthe edges of the ledger-plates serve to separate the grass between theguards into comparatively small bunches, so that they do not impede theaction of the knives, the inclined faces of the notches serving toprevent the small bunches from running together.

The finger-bar is folded to a more or less vertical position when not inuse by means of folding mechanism acting through a rocking lever 32 andconnecting-rod 33, the rod 33 being connected to the shoe 27 at a pointa short distance outside or grassward of its hinge, as shown in Figs. 6and 7. Instead of connecting the rod 33 to the shoeit may be connecteddirectly to the finger-bar, as shown in Fig. l. By this construction thevertical movement ofthe forward end of the lever 32 eects acorresponding movement of the finger-bar, the finger-har being folded toa more or less vertical position when the forward end of the lever 32moves upward, and vice versa. The lever 32 is mounted upon a pivot 34,suitably secured in the frame of the machine, and itis caused to rock toraise the finger-bar by the action of the spring 35, as illustrated inFig. 6. The rear end of the spring 35 is connected to an adjustable stop36, secured to a bracket 37, carried by the frame of the machine at aconvenient point, and the forward endof the spring 35 is connected to ahook 38 or other suitable connection carried by an arm 39, which ismounted upon a pivot 40, fitted in a lug 41, carried by the lever andextending at right angles to said lever, as shown in Figs. l and 6. Thearrangement is such that the arm 39 is adapted to rock in a planeperpendicular to the plane of thelcver32,andthelength of thearm 39issuchthat when it is rocked to carry the hook 38 toits lowermost positionsaid hook will be in line with or below the pivot 34 of the lever 32,whereas when the hook 38 is in its uppermost position it will lie aconsiderable distance above the pivot 34. The result is that the spring35 exerts a lifting force when the .hook 38 is in its upper position,whereas when said hook is in its lowermost position the spring 35 exertsno lifting force. The arm 39 is rocked to move the hook 3S to itsoperative position by means of a foot-lever 42, mounted upon a pivot 43at its forward end and connected bya cord or other fiexible connection44 to a pulley 45, also mounted on the pivotpin 40 and connected to thearm 39. When the finger-bar is in its operative position on the ground,the foot-lever 42 is in its uppermost position, and the cord 44 iswoundv upon the pulley 45. When, however, the foot-lever 42 isdepressed, the unwinding of the cord 44 causes the rotation of thepulley 45 in the direction-indicated by the arrow in Fig. 7, therebyrocking the arm 39 in the direction indicated by the arrow in saidfigure and moving it to the position shown in Fig. 8, thus bringingthespring 35 into operative position. In order that the spring 35 may beadjusted to exert a greater or less lifting force on the finger-bar whenin operation, an

' adjustable stop 86, which is mounted on the pivot 40, is securedtightly against the pulley 45 by a nut 87, as shown in Figs. 9 and l0.The stop 86 carries an arm 88, which extends across the path of the arm39, and consequently by adjusting the stop S6 the arm 39 maybe stoppedat. any Vdesired point. The lifting effect of the spring 35 on thefingerbar varies with the distance of the forward end of the springabove the pivot 34, and therefore the lifting force applied to theiinger-bar when in operation may be varied by adjusting the stop 86, asabove described. To return the arm 39 and spring 35 into inoperativeposition, the spring 35 is so adjusted as to have a torsionalaction-that is to say, it is twisted to some extent before being put inplace, the direction of the twist being such as to cause it to exert atorsional strain upon the arm 39 in the direction indicated by the arrowin Fig. 8. To retain the torsion strain in the spring 35, the hook 36 isformed with a squared shank, as shown in Fig. 5. In order to hold thearm 39 in its operative position., a locking-pin 46 is provided, whichis mounted in suitable lugs 47, carried by the lever 32, and is adaptedto enter a socket in the arm 39, as indicated by dotted lines in Fig.6.' A spring 48 serves to :nove the pin 46 into said socket.

The draft of the team is applied through whiiletrees 49, as shown insection in Fig. ll, said whiffletrees being mounted upon a rod 50 bymeans of a bracket 5l. As shown in Fig. 1l, the rod 50 is secured to theunder side of the tongue 11 in brackets 52, the arrangement being suchthat the bracket 5l', which carries the whiffletrees, is movablelongitudinally upon said rod. Mounted upon the rod 50 forward of thebracket 5l is a spring 53, one end of which bears against the bracket5l, the other end thereof bearing against a lever 54, through which therod passes, said -lever being suitably slotted, as indicated by dottedlines in Figli, for that purpose. The lever 54 is mounted upon a pivot55 at its upper end, said pivot being carried' by a suitable IOC) IIO

fore referred to.

bracket 56, so that the lower end of said lever may swing lengthwise ofsaid rod 50 for the purpose of regulating the tension of the spring 53.

57 indicates an adjusting-lever, which is suitably pivoted upon theframe of the machine, vpreferably upon the tongue 11, and is connectedby a connecting-rod 58 to the lever 54, as shown in Fig. 11, so that theposition of the-,lever 54 may be adjusted as desired by the lever 57.The latter lever is arranged to be locked in position by the usualsegmental rack 59 and dog 60. By this construction the pressurefof thespring 53 against the the proportion of the draft transmitted directlyto the tongue and carriage as distinguished from that portion which istransmitted to the finger-bar-carrying frame, as will;

be hereinafter explained and as is fully described in my formerapplication h'ereinbe- That portion of the draft which is transmittedfrpm the whiffletrees 49 to the iinger-bar-carrying frame is transmittedthrough a spring 61 and links 62 63, as illustrated in Figs. l, 11, and12. The spring 61 is connected to the Whietree-brackets 51 by a hook 6land connecting-link 65. The spring 61 is mounted. in a frame consistingof side rods 66 67 and end bars 68 69, said, frame serving to limit thetension which may.

be placed upon the spring 6l, and thereby relieve said spring fromexcessive strain when the mower is in operation. Tothis end the lowerendof the spring 6l is connected to a link 70, Iixedly secured in thecross-bar 69,

while the upper end of the spring 61 is conin Fig. 1l, the ring 71 isprovided with a.

lshoulder 72, which is adapted to strike the cross-bar 68 and limitfurther outward movement of the link 65. By this construction when thespring 61 has been expanded sufciently to permit the ring 7l to strikethe cross-bar 68 further expansion thereof is prevented and the strainis transmitted to the side rods 66 and 67. As best shown in Fig. 12, thelink 70 is connected by a ring 73 to the links 62 63, andthe link 63 isconnected to a fixed pin or staple 74, secured to the fingerbar-carryingframe 23, so that that part of the draft which is transmitted throughthe link 63 is applied directly to said frame. The link 6,2

' is connected to a lever 75, mounted upon a pivot 76, secured to the-finger-bar-carrying frame, as shown in Fig. 12. The free arm 77 of thelever 75 engages a pin 78, carried by a locking-bolt 79 moving inbearings 8O 8l on.

` the flnger-bar-carrying frame, said bolt 79 crank may be locked inposition and the operation of the machine prevented. A spring 83,mounted upon the bolt 79, holds said bolt normally in engagement withthe crank 20; but said bolt-may be moved out of engagement with saidcrank by moving the arm 77 of the lever 75 backward. This isaccomplished in actual operation by the draft of the team through thelink 62, as will be hereinafter described. 84 indicates a stop arrangedback of the bolt 79 to limit its backward movement. The socket S2 in thecrank 2O is so placed with reference to the lockingbolt 79 that theknife-bar will be stopped on the half-stroke, thus bringing theknife-sections between the guards, preventing the packing of the grassbetween the guards and minimizing the danger of clogging when themachine is started. The operation of this part of myyinvention is asfollows: When the draft, is applied to the whiffletrees 49, the spring53 is compressed, thereby7 transmitting part of the draft to the tonguethrough lever 54, connecting-rod- 58, llever 57, and the locking devicesconnected therewith. At the same time part of the draft is transmittedto the finger-bar-carrying frame through the spring 61 and itsconnections, thereby slightly raising said frame.` The spring 53 iscompressed until the power transmitted to the carriage th rough saidspring, and also through the finger-bar-carrying frame, overcomes theresistance of the machine, at which time the machine begins to move.Obviously the extent to which the, draft is divided between the tongueor carriage proper and the iinger-bar-carrying frame depends upon theextent to which the whiffletrees 49 may move forward before the spring53 is compressed sufficiently to cause the carriage to move, since theforward movement of the Whiftletrees raises the tinger-bar-carryingframe to a greater or less extent, depending on the extent of themovement of the whiffletrees. It follows that by regulating the tensionof the spring 53 independently of the movement of the whifiletrees theextent to which said spring is put under tension by a given Vforwardmovement of the whiftletrees may be varied, and as greater forwardmovement oi' the whiffletrees results in the application of a greaterproportion of the draft directly to the nger-bar-carrying frame, itislevidentthat bymoving the lower end of the lever 54 forwardand therebyreducing the tension of the spring 53, a greater proportion of the draftis transmitted directly to the finger-barcarrying frame. When it isdesired to direct more of the draft of the team to thefingerbar-carryingA frame, the lever 57 is thrown forward, throwing thelower end of the lever 5ft forward and permitting the whiftletreebracket51 to move farther forward before the spring 53 is compressed the normalamount. -A greater pull is therefore delivered to the spring 61 and rods66 67. Consequently the pull on the links 62 63 is increased and thepressurevof the finger-bar upon 'the ground is reduced. By moving thelever 57.

l 'expand the spring 6l, owing to the forward movement of thewhiiiietrees upon the rod 50,

said spring expanding until the ring 7l strikes the cross-bar 68,afterwhich the draftis transmitted through the side rods 66 67. Owing to thefact that the team is usually very slow in starting,the draft will beapplied slowly to the draft devices. Consequently that part of the draftwhich is transmitted to the lever 75 Vthrough the link 62will not besufficient at first to operate said lever and throw back thelocking-bolt 79. As soon, however, as the team acquires headway theamount of the draft transmitted to lever 75 will cause it to rock,moving the locking-bolt 79 out of engagement with the crank 20,whereupon said crank will start abruptly under the action of the wheels,giving the cutter-bar a sudden start, thereby loosening it from anygrass with which it may have become engaged and enabling it to operateproperly. By thus starting the knives abruptly and with considerablepower, as is the case with the construction above described, the dangerot' the knives clogging at the start is practically entirely avoided.The division of the draft between the finger-bar frame and the lever 75,effected by the use of the links 62 63, serves to prevent the unlockingof the crank 20 until the team gathers headway, as obviously if a greatproportion of the draft were transmitted directly to the lever 75 evenat starting the draft would be sufficiently great to operate said leverat once and release the knives, the advantages of my construction beingthereby lost.

At no time in the motion of the harvester is the draft so slight thatthe machine will be locked. For instance, in traversing a downgrade orincline the grass affords sufficient resistance to make the draft holdthe lockingbolt 79 out of operative or locking position.

In practice the team usually stops more or less suddenly; butin theconstruction herein described the spring 61, being constantly eX- pandedduring the operation of the machine, retracts as soon as the draft ofthe team is removed, and such retraction of the spring draws the machineslightly toward the team when their progressive movement ceases, therebycontinuing the operation of the cutting mechanism slightly after thedraft has been removed sufficiently to relax the tension upon the lever75 and permit the locking-bolt 79 to move into operative position underthe v action of its spring 83.

Consequently as soon as the socket 82 in the crank 20 moves into properposition under the action of spring 61, as above described, thelocking-bolt 79 enters it and locks the cutter-bar against furthermovement, so that the cutter-bar is stopped between the guards, as abovedescribed.

I have described my improvements in detail as herein illustrated; butWhile I consider the specific forms of my improvements as illustratedand described herein to be the best I do not wish to be limited to suchspecific details except as specifically claimed, as variousmodifications and alterations may be made Without departing from myinvention.

That which I claim as my invention, and desire to secure by LettersPatent, is

1. In a harvesting-machine, the combination with a carriage, afinger-bar-carrying frame, and a nger-bar carried thereby, of a draftdevice, means for transmitting a part of the draft applied to said draftdevice, to said nger-bar-carrying frame, spring mechanism fortransmitting a part of the draft applied to said draft device to thecarriage, and a lever for adjusting said spring mechanism and therebyregulate the division of the draft between the carriage and thefinger-bar frame,

vsubstantially as described.

2. The combination with a carriage, a finger-bar-carrying frame, and afinger-bar carried thereby, of a draft device, means for transmittingthe draft applied to said draft device partly to the carriage and partlyto the finger-bar-carrying frame, and lever mechanism adapted to beoperated to regulate the division of the draft between the carriage andthe finger-bar frame while the finger-bar is in operative position,substantially as described.

3. In a harvesting-machine, the combinaA tion with a carriage, atinger-bar-carrying frame, and a finger-bar carried thereby, of a draftdevice, means for transmitting a part of the draft applied to the draftdevice to the finger-bar-carryingframe, spring mechanism located infront of said draft device and constructed to be compressed when thedraft is applied, for transmitting a part of the draft applied to thedraft device to said carriage, and a lever for adjusting said springmechanism and regulating the division of the draft `between the carriageand finger-bar frame,

substantially as described.

4. In a harvesting-machine, the combination with a machine-frame, of averticallymovable finger-bar carried thereby, a longitudinally-movabledraft device, an adjustable stop for limiting the longitudinal movementof said draft device, a lever for adjusting said stop, and means fortransmitting a part of the draft to the nger-bar frame when said devicemoves longitudinally, substantially as described.

5. In a harvesting-machine, the combination with a carriage, afinger-barcarrying frame and a finger-bar carried thereby, of a tongue,arod 50 carried by said tongue,a draft IOO IIO

the draft device,and avlever for adjusting said spring, substantially asdescribed.

6. In a harvesting-machine, the combination with a carriage, afingerbar-carrying frame and a finger-bar carried thereby, of a tongue,a rod 50 carried by said tongue,a draft device supported from said rodand movable longitudinally thereupon, a spring upon said rod acting toresist the forward movement of the draft device, a lever 54 pivoted atits end and adapted to engage one end of said spring, and a lever 57connected to said lever 54, for operating it, substantially asdescribed.

7. In a harvesting-machine, the combination of a finger-bar frame, adraft device, an expansible spring interposed between said finger-barframe and the draft device and constructed to sustain thel initial forceofthe draft, a frame inclosing the spring` and in operative connectionwith the finger-bar frame, and a stop on the spring engaging theinclosing frame when the spring expands` to cause the inclosing frame tosustain the draft after the spring is extended a certain extent by theinitial draft,v substantially as described.

8. In a harvesting-machine, the combination with a tinger-bar-carryingframe, of an inclined spring-containing frame, links connecting thelower end of 'the spring-containing frame with the tinger-bar-carryingframe, a spring arranged in and connected with the lower end of thespring-containing frame, a shouldercdvlink movable in the upper end ofthe spring-containing frame and connected with the upper end of thespring, and a draft device connected to said movable shouldered link,substantially as, and for the purposes described. f

9. In a harvesting-machine, the combination with a carriage, and draftdevices, of a reciprocating cutter-bar, means for operating thelatter,spring mechanism which acts to advance the carriage slightlyafter the stopping of. the team, and a locking mechanism for locking thecutter-barwhen the carriage-advances, substantially as described.

IO. In a harvesting-machine, the combination with a carriage, aiinger-bar-carrying frame, and a linger-bar carried thereby,'of a tionwith a carriage, a finger-bar-carrying frame and a finger-bar carriedthereby, of a cutter-bar, means for locking said cutter-bar againstoperation, and means for automatic- .ally unlocking the cutter-bar afterthe team has started, substantially as described.

12. In a harvesting-machine, the combination with a machine-frame, and acutter-bar carried thereby,'of meansfor locking theLcutter-bar againstoperation until after the team is started, and means operated by theforward movement ofthe machine for actuating the cutter-bar,substantially as described.

13. In a harvesting-machine, the combination with a machine-frame, and acutter-bar carried thereby, of means for preventing the operation of thecutter-bar when the machine is not under way, and means for automat-Iically releasing the cutter-bar after the team y 'has gotten under way,substantially as described.

14. In a harvesting-machine, the combination with a machine-frame, and acutter-bar carried thereby, of means for automatically locking thecutter-bar against operation when the machine stops, substantially asdescribed;

15. In a harvesting-machine, the combination `With a carriage, atinger-bar-carrying frame and a finger-bar carried thereby, of acutter-bar carried by said finger-bar, and means for automaticallylocking said cutterbar against operation when the machine stops, saidlocking devices being adapted to stop the cutter-bar sections midwaybetween adjacent guards, substantially as described.

I6. In a harvesting-machine, the combination with a carriage, of draftdevices, a iinger-bar, a cutter-bar mounted on saidiingerbar, a crankadapted to be rocked for operating said cutter-bar, a locking-bolt 79adapted to engage and lock said crank, a lever 75 adapted to operatesaid locking-bolt, and means connecting said lever 75 to the draftdevices, substantially as described.

17. In a harvesting-machine, the combination with a carriage, afinger-bar-carrying frame and a finger-bar carried thereby, of acutter-bar mounted on said finger-hama crank 20 for operating saidcutter-bar, draft devices,

a locking-'bolt 79 adapted to engage and lock said crank, a spring 83adapted to move said bolt into engagement with said crank, a lever 75for disengaging said bolt from said crank, and means connecting saidlever 75 with the draft devices, substantially as described.` f

18. In a harvesting-machine, the combination with a machine-frame, and afinger-bar carried thereby, of folding mechanism for folding thefinger-bar to inoperative position,

IOSv

IIO

spring mechanism for operating said folding mechanism to fold saidinger-bar from operative to inoperative position, and means for movingsaid spring mechanism into and out of position to operate said foldingmechanism, substantially as described.

19. In a harvesting-machine, the combination with a machine-frame, and afinger-bar `carried thereby, of a pivoted lifting-lever adapted to beoperated to fold said finger-bar from operative to inoperative position,and a spring adapted tok operate said lifting-lever to fold saidlinger-bar from operative to inoperative position, said spring beingmovable -into and ont of position to operate saidglifting-lever,substantially asdescribed. y y

' 20. In a harvesting-machine, the combina- IZO tion with amachine-frame, and a foldable finger-bar carried thereby, of a pivotedlifting-lever which operates to fold said ngerbar, and a spring whichoperates said liftinglever to fold said finger-bar, said spring normallyexerting insufficient force on the lifting-lever to operate it and beingadjustable to exert sufficient force on said lever to fold thefinger-bar, and means for shifting the point at which said spring actson said lever, with reference to the fulcrum of the lever, substantiallyas described.

2l. In a harvesting-machine, the combination With a machine-frame and afinger-bar carried thereby, of a pivoted lifting-lever for folding saidnger bar, an arm carried by said lifting-lever and movable in apathsustaining an angular relation to the plane of saidlifting-lever,and a spring connected with said arm and with a suitablesupport, substantially as and for the purposes specified.

22. In aharvesting-machine, the combination with a machine-frame andaiuger-bar carried thereby, of a pivoted lifting-lever for folding saidflngerbar, an arm carried by said lifting-lever and movable in a pathsustaining an angular relation to the plane of said lifting-lever,and aspring connected with said arm and with a suitable support, said springhaving a torsional as Well as a resilient action, substantially asdescribed.

23. In a harvesting-machine, the combination With a machine-frame and afinger-bar carried thereby, of a pivoted lifting-lever for lifting saidfinger-bar, an arm pivoted upon said lever and movable in a planesubstantially perpendicular lo that of the lifting-lever, means forrocking said arm, and a spring secured at one end to a suitable support,and

at the other end to said arm, near one end, substantially as and for thepurposes specified.

24. In a harvesting-machine, the combination with a machine-frame and afinger-bar carried thereby, of a pivoted lifting-lev er for lifting saidfinger-bar, an arm pivoted upon said lever and movable in a planesubstantially perpendicular to that of the lifting-lever, means forrocking said arm, and a torsion-spring secured at one end to a suitablesupport, and at the other end to said arm, near one end, substantiallyas and for the purposes specified.

25. In a harvesting-machine, the combination with a machine-frame and afinger-bar carried thereby, of a pivoted lifting-lever for folding saidfinger-bar, an arm pivoted upon said lever and movable in a planesubstantially perpendicular to that of the lifting-lever, means forrocking said arm, a Springsecured at one end to a suitable support, andat the other` end to said arm near one end, and a foot-lever for rockingsaid arm, substantially as and for the puposes specified.

26. In a harvesting-machine, the combination With a machine-frame and afinger-bar carried thereby, of a pivoted lifting-lever for folding saidfinger bar, an arm pivoted to said lever and movable in a planesubstantially perpendicular to that of said lever, a pulley 45 carriedby said arm, a foot-lever, a iieXible connection connecting said leverWith said pulley, and a spring 35 connected at one end to a fixedsupport, at the other end to said arm, substantially as described.

27. In a harvesting-machine, the combination with a machine-frame and afinger-bar carried thereby, of a pivoted lifting-lever for folding saidfinger-bar, an arm pivoted to said lever and movable in a planesubstantially perpendicular to that of said lever, a pulley 45 carriedby said arm, a foot-lever, a fieXible connection connecting said leverwith said pulley, a spring 35 connected at one end to a fixed support,at the other end to said arm, and a lock for locking said arm inoperative position, substantially as described.

28. In a harvesting-machine, the combination with a machine-frame and afinger-bar carried thereby, ofa pivoted lifting-lever for folding saidfinger-bar, an arm pivoted t0 said lever and movable in a planesubstantially perpendicular to that of said lever, a pulley 45 carriedby said arm, a foot-lever, a flexible connection -connecting said leverwith said pulley, and a torsion-spring 35 connected at one end to afixed support, and at the other end to said arm, substantially asdescribed.

29. The combination with a pivoted liftinglever, of anarm pivoted uponsaid lever and movable in a path sustaining an angular relation to theplane of said lifting-lever, and a spring connected with said arm and toa suitable support, substantially as described.

30. The combination with a pivoted liftinglever, of an arm pivoted uponsaid lever and movable in a path sustaining an angular relation to theplane of said lifting-lever, and a torsion-spring connected with saidarm and to a suitable support, substantially as described.

31. The combination with a pivoted liftinglever, of an arm pivoted uponsaid lever and movable in a path sustaining an angular relation to theplane of Said liftinglever, a spring connected with said arm and to asuitable support, and means for moving said arm about its pivot,substantially as described.

32. In a harvesting-machine, the combination with a finger-bar-carryingframe, a cutter-bar and a lock therefor, of a draft device, and meansoperated by the draft to unlock the cutter-bar, substantially asdescribed.

33. In a harvesting-machine, the combination With a inger-bar-carryiugframe, a cutter-bar and a lock therefor, of a lever adapted to beoperated by the draft to unlock the cutter-bar, a draft device, andmeans for distributing the draft applied to the finger-barcarryingframe, partly directly to said frame, and partly to said lever,substantially as described.

34. In a harvesting-machine, the combination With a finger-bar-carryingframe, a cut- IIO ter-bar and a lock therefor, of a lever adapted to beoperated by the draft to unlock the cutter-bar, a draft device, andlinks 62,63, one of said links connecting the draft device with saidlever, and the other link connecting the draft device directly with thefinger-barcarrying frame, substantially as described.

35. The combination with a pivoted liftinglever, of an arm pivoted uponsaid lever and movable in a path sustaining an angular relation to theplane of said lifting lever, a spring connected with said arm and to asuitable support, and means for regulating the travel of said arm,substantially as described. 36. The combination with a lifting-lever, ofa spring adapted to operate said lever, and mechanism independent-of themovement of said lever upon its fulcrum for adjusting said spring tovary the distance from the fulcrum of said lever of the point at whichsaid spring acts upon said lever, substantially as described. 37. Thecombination With a pivoted liftinglever, and means connecting said leverwith the object to be lifted, of aspring for operating said lever, andmechanism for varying the distance from the fulcrum of said lever of thepoint at which the stress of the spring is applied thereto,substantially as described.

38. The combination with a pivoted liftinglever,ofaspring normallyundertensionaland torsional strain, said spring being arranged tooperate the lever and movable to vary the distance from the pivot ofsaid lever of the point at which the force of the torsion-spring isapplied, and an adjustable connecting device between said lever and saidtorsion-spring and normally held in one of its positions by lifting-lever, means connecting said lever with the object to be lifted, saidspring'being connected with said lever for operating the same, andmechanism for varying the distance from the fulcrum of said lever to thepoint at which the stress of the spring 1s appliedthereto, substantiallyas described.

Lll. A lifting device consisting of .a liftingsprin g normally undertenslonal and torsional strain, said spring being connected With asuitable support, a lever connected with said spring and with the objectto be lifted, and means operated by the torsional strain of said springfor shifting the point at Which said spring acts on said lever withreference to the fulcrum thereof, substantially as described.

42. The combination with a lifting-lever, of an operating-springtherefor, said spring being under tensional and torsional strain, and Ameans operated by the torsional strain of said spring for varying theleverage of said spring on the lever, substantially as described.

43. The combination of a pivoted liftinglever, an arm carried therebyand movable in ,a path sustaining Aan angular relation to the plane ofsaid lever, and a spring connected with said arm and with a suitablesupport, substantially as described.

44. The combination of a pivoted liftinglever, an arm carried therebyand movable in a path sustaining an angular relation to the plane ofsaid lever, and a spring connected with said arm and vWith a suitablesupport,said spring being under tensional and torsional strain, thetorsional strain acting normally to move said arm' in one direction,substantially as described.

45. The combination with a carriage, a nger-bar-carrying frame, and afinger-bar carried thereby, of a draft device, means connecting saiddraft device with the linger-barcarrying frame, a spring between saiddraft device and the carriage, and lever mechanism adapted to beoperated to vary the ten-

